Your wide-format inkjet printer is hard at work, printing a new banner for an upcoming promotion. You glance over at the machine and notice there is banding in your image. Is something wrong with the print head? Could there be a leak in the ink system? It might be time to contact a wide format printer repair company.
To help you find a service partner to get you back up and running, here are the top five things to look for when hiring a printer repair company.
Multi-Layer Support
Strong Relationships with Manufacturers
Full-Service Contract Options
Local Technicians
Focused Expertise
1. Multi-Layer Support
Are you looking to hire an independent service technician or a company that specializes in your equipment?
There is a major difference between the two. A company that specializes in printer repair will offer layers of service and expertise. You’re not just hiring one technician; you’re hiring a full support system. There will be a full team available to support your printer, including everything that goes along with it:
Applications
Software
Inks
Media
Pre and Post-Processing Equipment
And if your usual technician is unavailable, the printer repair company will have others available to help you. Small, local repair shops and freelancers won’t have the same capabilities.
2. Strong Relationships with Manufacturers
If your printer needs a specific part that’s on back order, how long will you be willing to wait for it?
Since small repair shops and contracted technicians don’t specialize in one type of equipment or technology, they don’t have close relationships with printer manufacturers or the pull to get prioritization. They aren’t able to escalate issues to the OEM’s top management because they don’t have the relationships.
Printer repair companies, however, make it a priority to foster close relationships and partnerships with the manufacturers they represent. This means they have an inside connection, and will have more sway in getting you what you need. There’s also a good chance that the repair company has an inventory of parts already on hand.
There are a ton of printer manufacturers out there and not every company will have a partnership with every brand. When you’re vetting printer repair companies, make sure they have a close relationship with the manufacturer of your printer and any printers you may be considering in the future.
3. Multiple Service Contract Options
Some smaller repair shops and independent technicians will typically only offer break/fix services — something breaks, you call them, they fix it and that’s that. In the moment this might seem like all you need. But as soon as you receive the invoice or the same problem happens again, you might wish you explored other options.
A company that specializes in printer repairs will offer multiple tiered service plans to help you control costs by finding the best service plan to fit your business. These go above and beyond break/fix solutions. Each printer out there has a unique circumstance of their in-house expertise, their exact printer model and their location. All should factor in when considering the best post-warranty service option for your business. That being said, there should be multiple different service options so each printer can get the best service and the best service value.
Additionally, they evaluate the entire piece of equipment, not just the problem areas. These companies can do this because they work with machines like yours every day, and have the technical expertise to:
Identify how the problem started
Recognize if you may be doing something wrong and offer advice
Check if there are any other related or unrelated issues
Offer instructions and tips to avoid repeat problems
Printer repair companies act more like your partner and less like a one-time solution provider. They are available whenever you need them, which is invaluable when you consider the investment and the importance of your industrial inkjet printers to your business.
4. Local Technicians
If you’re in San Diego and you purchased a wide format printer from a company with one location in Chicago, getting repairs might be tricky. This can often be the case when people purchase printers at trade shows. You should at least be able to get phone support, but what if your printer needs on-site repairs?
If you have a service contract with the company, they may be able to diagnose a problem over the phone and offer suggestions that won’t create further damage. But if you prefer on-site attention or your printer needs more than troubleshooting, you may have to pay for travel costs to get a technician on site.
If you don’t have a service contract, you have the opportunity to find a printer repair company that has a local presence. As you’re looking for a printer repair service company, location is of the utmost importance. A Google search for services in your area might only produce a few small repair shops, so your best route is to either call the manufacturer or get referrals from people you trust.
The manufacturer will direct you to partners in your area, but you should still do a bit of sleuthing before settling on a repair company. Just because a company services a particular brand printer doesn’t mean they can service your exact model for your exact application.
5. Focused Expertise
Some manufacturers, offer technicians the opportunity to receive an official certification to perform repairs. However, this isn’t across the board for all brands, and usually serves as a formality.
More important than an official certificate is experience. A technician could be certified to repair printers, but may not have even touched one in over a year. It’s more valuable to find a printer repair company with technicians who are in the trenches every day, continually building upon their first-hand experience. Just be sure to verify that they have direct experience with the brand and model of your equipment.
Aily Group is a full-service industrial printer provider with technicians and application specialists all across the Asian and Europe In our nearly 10 years of experience, we’ve worked hands-on with the biggest names in commercial printing, including Mimaki, Mutoh, Epson and EFI. To talk about our service and support capabilities for your printers, contact us today!
Post time: Sep-20-2022